Gabriel Tavv

I was fishing in a canal with a whole pilchard. It was just after sunset. I did not feel the bite or anything but I pulled up my bait because I was fishing landbased on top of this cage. I pulled up and I felt the weight. It started taking drag not fast but slow and heavy. It never suctioned to the bottom but had lots of weight. I have hooked countless stingrays and I've landed 60cm+ flat head but this felt different. It saw the land and went off the other way. It just kept swimming until it did one massive slow head shake like a bang bang. Then the hook popped out. It was like a 2 minute fight. I'm not sure what it was but left me questioning. Any ideas on what fish.  

I was fishing in a canal with a whole pilchard. It was just after sunset. I did not feel the bite or anything but I pulled up my bait because I was fishing landbased on top of this cage. I pulled up and I felt the weight. It started taking drag not fast but slow and heavy. It never suctioned to the bottom but had lots of weight. I have hooked countless stingrays and I've landed 60cm+ flat head but this felt different. It saw the land and went off the other way. It just kept swimming until it did one massive slow head shake like a bang bang. Then the hook popped out. It was like a 2 minute fight. I'm not sure what it was but left me questioning. Any ideas on what fish.  

I was fishing in a canal with a whole pilchard. It was just after sunset. I did not feel the bite or anything but I pulled up my bait because I was fishing landbased on top of this cage. I pulled up and I felt the weight. It started taking drag not fast but slow and heavy. It never suctioned to the bottom but had lots of weight. I have hooked countless stingrays and I've landed 60cm+ flat head but this felt different. It saw the land and went off the other way. It just kept swimming until it did one massive slow head shake like a bang bang. Then the hook popped out. It was like a 2 minute fight. I'm not sure what it was but left me questioning. Any ideas on what fish.  

Staying near the bottom and was about 2.6 meters deep with a bit of current and no slime or anything on the line. It was also a rocky bottom. Frays along the leader line with 20 lb black magic pretty frayed. 

the fact that you said never suctioned to the bottom rules out the classic stingray. the fact that it was a canal could point towards a big Jewfish, or even a eel, i have caught countless down near mission point at sunset, they put up a good fight.  Just a few questions to help identify it, was it staying near the surface or the bottom, how deep was the area you were fishing and were there and frays in the line pointing towards teeth or anything like slime on the line the could indicate it was an eel